I wanted, probably even expected, to like this more than I did. I was so excited about a sapphic vampire story that predated Dracula but that isn’t really talked about—I certainly hadn’t heard of it until some time within the past year. The book is narrated by Laura, who lives with her father in an isolated castle. They take Carmilla in when she is injured in an accident just outside of their home, and the two young women become close. Meanwhile, other girls and women in the surrounding area have been falling ill and dying without an obvious cause.
Unfortunately, the book fell short for me. While I typically like novellas and don’t find them lacking, this was too short to do what it needed to do. Sheridan Le Fanu didn’t have the space—or at the very least didn’t effectively use the space—to build a rising sense of dread and creepiness. While it’s been a long time since I’ve read Dracula, I remember feeling creeped out at least once while reading it, and I didn’t really get that with Carmilla. We barely get enough of an exploration of the relationship between Carmilla and Laura, and the Gothic vibes that are important to this kind of story were vastly underdeveloped.
I did, however, find this interesting from a historical perspective. Le Fanu was writing in Victorian times, so the lesbian angle had to be somewhat subtle and framed in a way that would be acceptable to readers. Women in Victorian literature can certainly be affectionate with each other, but it’s clear that Carmilla crossed the line for typically-displayed affection. While I didn’t read an annoated copy (because the edition I had was too pretty to pass up), my understanding is that having Carmilla be a vampire made the queerness more palatable to Victorian audiences.
I am glad I read the book. It was interesting to see the very beginnings of vampire lore and how much it’s changed over the years, as well as how much was repeated to some extent in Dracula. However, it was a bit of a letdown and earned 3.25 stars from me, rounded down.